To help thousands of people in over 200 countries diagnose, treat and prevent common illnesses
July 26, 2011 8:25 PM   Subscribe

Hesperian is a non-profit publisher of books and newsletters for community-based health care, mostly aimed at the third world. Their first book, Where There Is No Doctor, A Village Health Handbook, has been translated into 88 languages and is one of the most widely used training and work manuals for community health care in the world. They have now made 20 of their publications available for free download, many of which can now also be browsed online through their website using an "Ebrary" in-browser interface.

Available publications: Some of the listed publications are also available for free download / browsing in French, Spanish and other languages.

Previously on Mefi (in 2007): mrbill had uploaded some of their publications to scribd.
posted by zarq (15 comments total) 72 users marked this as a favorite
 
Oh, this is great! I Used Where There Is No Doctor when I was doing fieldwork in northwestern Kenya. It was helpful because we were camped right next to a Turkana encampment and there must have been about a gazillion kids with pinkeye. I am going to download these now in anticipation of more fieldwork - thanks for this awesome post!
posted by ChuraChura at 8:35 PM on July 26, 2011 [2 favorites]


Awesome! I hope it's helpful to you!

They're apparently now working on an updated version of WTIND, too. The Foundation keeps a blog, and perhaps it will be announced there when it's released.
posted by zarq at 8:43 PM on July 26, 2011


Relatedly. I remembered it because there were a number of mentions of "Where There Is No Doctor" in that thread.
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 8:53 PM on July 26, 2011 [2 favorites]


Woooooo! Now I can skip the heimlich and go right to tracheotomies!
posted by BrotherCaine at 9:04 PM on July 26, 2011


There were a lot of people that dissed the One Laptop Per Child project as absurd. "These people don't need computers! They need a sandwich!"

They need information. Knowing is half-way to doing. Ignorance is not bliss; it is oblivion.
posted by SPrintF at 9:19 PM on July 26, 2011 [4 favorites]


Great post. I've worked in the last few years in some of the most remote parts of the 3rd world and frankly it can be a bit scary to know you're in a place where if something goes wrong, you can't see a doctor for 72 hours, minimum, if you're lucky. And, you're already lucky, because you're one of the few people who could actually afford the means to get out of there and find transport to somewhere where there is a doctor. Knowing that complications from a broken bone or relatively minor head injury could be lethal can be something that puts everything in a whole new perspective, so these types of resources are invaluable at providing help where there is none. That much more so for those who will never leave such places in their lives.
posted by allkindsoftime at 12:22 AM on July 27, 2011 [1 favorite]


Ship Captain's Medical Guide (FPP) for ipad and iphone (UKL 2.59) and a free download as pdf.
posted by adamvasco at 3:49 AM on July 27, 2011 [2 favorites]


Previously
posted by Avenger at 5:47 AM on July 27, 2011


Whoops. Lawl
posted by Avenger at 5:49 AM on July 27, 2011


Avenger: "Whoops. Lawl"

Heh. :)
posted by zarq at 6:28 AM on July 27, 2011


Bibles for Peace Corps Volunteers everywhere.
posted by oneironaut at 7:00 AM on July 27, 2011


This is fantastic! Cement fillings! Oooopa!
posted by Katjusa Roquette at 7:09 AM on July 27, 2011


Thanks, zarq! Great update.
posted by mrbill at 9:17 AM on July 27, 2011


Don't forget The Emergency War Surgery Handbook.

I've got an "everything in one file" PDF version on my website.
posted by mrbill at 9:25 AM on July 27, 2011 [2 favorites]


Thank you, mrbill!
posted by zarq at 9:40 AM on July 27, 2011


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